1,3-Butadiene is a useful and versatile chemical used for the production of numerous fine and commodity chemicals. Major products of note include butadiene rubber and poly (styrene-co-butadiene). 1,3-Butadiene is typically derived from petrochemical feedstocks including ethylene and as such its market price is tightly correlated with that of crude oil and natural gas and, perhaps more importantly, it is non-renewable. A sustainable alternative to conventional 1,3-butadiene production, involves the engineering of microorganisms with the novel ability to synthesize it at high levels and directly from renewable resources.
However, at present an inexpensive and sustainable source of 1,3-butadiene remains undeveloped. This is in part due to the fact that one of the key pathway enzymes has yet to be discovered or engineered. More specifically, there are at present no natural or engineered enzymes known to display 2,4-pentadienoate decarboxylase activity.
In light of the foregoing, it is an advancement in the current state of the art to provide a method by which 2,4-pentadienoate can be enzymatically decarboxylated to form 1,3-butadiene. This conversion is exceptionally advantageous if it is achieved within a single host cell that produces 2,4-pentadienoate directly from a renewable substrate such as glucose. Moreover, it is additionally advantageous if said method is generalizable, in that it is further amenable for use with other organic acid substrates possessing 2,4-dienoate functionality.